Diary, Journal, Notes vs Grid Diary
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Diary, Journal, Notes
Record daily activities, thoughts, and memories securely. Organize entries with tags, locations, and folders. Sync across devices and export your data easily. Features include mood tracking, photo attachments, and a calendar view.
- Secure PIN and fingerprint lock
- Customizable themes and 30+ languages
- Powerful search and filtering
- Mood tracker and Atlas view
- Backup, restore, import, and export options
- Cloud sync via Dropbox
- Attach unlimited photos
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Diaro is a multi-platform diary, journal, notes app designed to record your activities, daily events, appointments, experiences, thoughts, feelings, secrets and ideas throughout the day and sync data across all your devices & PC. It helps you organize your daily diary/journal entries or notes from the past in the easiest way. Preserve your special memories, store personal moments & memories or keep track of your life with help of Diaro. DIARO FEATURES SECURE & PRIVATE Lock & Protect your private diary entries with a PIN, Security code or fingerprint. Protect Privacy with data encryption & passcode THEMES & LANGUAGES Personalize UI with different UI colors & Themes. Multilingual UI(30+ languages), adapted for phones, tablets and web. Simple and intuitive interface SEARCH & ORGANIZE Powerful search and filter functions. Organize diary / journal entries using folders, tags, locations and find records by keyword, filter them by date, tags, folder or even location MOOD TRACKER ,ATLAS & THROWBACK Daily Diary Mood tracker, On this day diary memories / daily diary throwback, Weather info & beautiful Atlas view BACKUP & RESTORE Backup diary entries for easy recovery & restore easily IMPORT & EXPORT Export to PDF, Docx or Txt and print or share them via Diaro App or Diaro Online (PDF, DOCX, CSV & TXT). Import data from other popular diary apps : Journey, Evernote, Catch Notes, Flava, Google Keep, Momento, Day One apps SYNC Using Dropbox you can seamlessly sync between the Diaro app on all of your devices and Diaro Online using any web browser STATISTICS Detailed interesting statistics about your diary entries and mood OTHER FEATURES • Automatic Geotagging for new diary entries • Calendar view for easy navigation & overview of daily entries • Attach & store unlimited amount of photos in your diary • Cloud storage & Sync (via Dropbox) • Share diary entries and photos via Email, SMS, Twitter, Whatsapp etc. • Quickly create a new diary entry from the notification bar icon or widget • Multi-window mode (if supported by device) • Swipe between your diary entries • Speak to write, voice to text DIARO ONLINE You can access your Diaro diary entries online on any device using your web browser ABOUT DIARO Trusted by millions of users worldwide, Diaro is the smart, intuitive and most secure way to keep a personal diary. Download now for free and keep your secret diary, diet diary logs, travel diary with stories, sleep journal, photos and maps , wish lists, daily expenses, autobiography or daily life diary notes, securely. You can organize your receipts, invoices, or use it as a homework tracker or assignment planner, organizer, notebook or as simple note-taking app. Keep A Beautiful, Orderly, and Private Journal Of Your Thoughts and Days With Diaro! Find the FAQs in the Help & Support or contact us at support@diaroapp.com DIARO PRO FEATURES Diaro PRO membership is an auto-renewing subscription. Pricing: US$5.99/year. Price may vary by location and are clearly displayed in the app. • Sync your diary across all your devices and Diaro Online using your Dropbox account • Export to PDF & other formats • Ad-Free Premium Experience • Priority Customer Support + Payment will be charged to your iTunes account at confirmation of purchase. + Your subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. + Your account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the renewal. + You can manage your subscription and switch off auto-renewal by accessing your Account Settings after purchase. + Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited if you purchase a subscription to that publication, where applicable. Privacy policy: https://www.diaroapp.com/privacy-policy Terms of use: https://www.diaroapp.com/terms
Grid Diary
This app offers a guided journaling experience to foster personal development and mindfulness. It helps users build positive habits, manage stress, and enhance various aspects of their lives through customizable prompts and unique layouts.
- Prompted journaling with custom questions
- Unique grid and mandala layouts
- Daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly planning
- Supports various journaling methods
- Mindfulness and self-care focus
- Stress and anxiety alleviation techniques
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Introducing Grid Diary: More than just a journaling app, it's your comprehensive personal development system. Embark on a personal growth journey that covers all aspects: • Embrace mindfulness & self-love • Establish morning & evening routines • Enhance personal health & wellbeing • Develop self-care habits • Alleviate stress and anxiety through Cognitive Behavioral Therapy • Acquire new skills • Boost productivity • Strengthen relationships • Ignite creativity ...and so much more. At Grid Diary, we understand that personal development is a holistic endeavor, not a singular pursuit. Grid Diary empowers you to create a diary system that goes beyond simple daily entries. By utilizing features such as custom prompts, tags, and categories, you can build a personalized framework for cultivating happiness and developing positive habits such as proactivity, optimism, and gratitude. Use Grid Diary to unlock the true power of keeping a diary and start your journey towards a happier, healthier you. # Feature Highlights • Prompted Journaling: Guided Self-Reflections Avoid writer's block with our question library or customize your own prompts for deeper self-reflection. • Unique Grid Format: Elegant and Comprehensive Organize all that matters to you on a single page with our customizable grid layout, fostering a holistic personal development system. • Mandala Layout: Journal like a Mind Map Our 9-grid Mandala-inspired layout, featuring a fixed center, emulates the artful representation of life's organization and connection to the cosmos. Journaling becomes intuitive and mirrors the way our minds work. • Day/Week/Month/Year Dimensions: Create Your Own Rituals Establish rituals that anchor you in time, crafting a framework for planning, acting, and reviewing on a daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly basis. • Compatibility with Various Journaling Methods Whether you prefer morning diaries, success diaries, manifestation journals, or bullet journals, Grid Diary's flexibility accommodates your preferred approach. Discover the transformative power of Grid Diary and unlock your full potential today! # Don't Just Take Our Word for It "New Apps We Love" - Apple "If you've wanted to journal but don't know where to start, meet Grid Diary. Swappable prompts in a lovely, flexible grid format invite you to record and reflect on life's happenings - from noting your habits and goals to sharing affirmation and gratitude." - Google "Grid Diary is a good option for journal writers pressed for time or inspiration." - The New York Times --- As a dedicated three-person team, we believe that privacy is paramount for a journaling app. With no venture capital or advertisers backing Grid Diary, our long-term development relies solely on our members' paid subscriptions. We never sell your data to third parties for profit. # Note about Health App integration: After you have authorized access to health data, you can insert information such as steps or activity energy into your diary. Additionally, you can save your journaling time as mediation minutes to Health app. Grid Diary won't use your health data for other purposes. Privacy Policy https://griddiaryapp.com/support/privacy Terms of Service https://griddiaryapp.com/support/terms
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is monetization model: Diary, Journal, Notes at freemium against Grid Diary's subscription. Diary, Journal, Notes also leads on review sentiment (70% vs 48%) and update cadence (weekly vs every 2 weeks). Grid Diary's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, rating, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Diary, Journal, Notes sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $8.99 per year and Grid Diary sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Diary, Journal, Notes against 4.6 for Grid Diary. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4.5K and 963 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 70% of Diary, Journal, Notes's written reviews are positive against 48% of Grid Diary's.
Diary, Journal, Notes ships an update weekly, Grid Diary every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Diary, Journal, Notes | Grid Diary |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (4.5K ratings) — better | 4.6 (963 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 70.1% of reviews — better | 48.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 4.5K — better | 963 |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Every 2 weeks |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Freemium — better | Subscription |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 56 MB | 80 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Abhishek Kumar | Sumi Interactive |
Customer experience
Diary, Journal, Notes
Grid Diary
User reviews
Diary, Journal, Notes
From 4.5K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Consistent for years
- 🚀 Excellent app
- 🚀 Great app and great support
- 👍 Love this app
- 👍 Fantastic replacement to a physical diary
Room to improve
- 🐛 Suddenly become useless
- 🐛 Terrible app
- 🐛 Doesn't work anymore
- 🐛 Horrible, don't work
- 🐛 PIN protection doesn't work
Grid Diary
From 963 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🌟 Excellent journaling app
- 📚 Customizable templates and prompts
- 🧠 Helps with self-reflection and mental health
- 🗓️ Organized grid layout
- 🔍 Useful search and timeline features
Room to improve
- 🐛 Sync issues and data loss
- 💰 Expensive subscription model
- 🔒 Lack of account deletion or data export options
- 🤔 Confusing onboarding and upgrade process
- 🕰️ Slow loading times and app freezes
Bugs and requests
Diary, Journal, Notes
Reported bugs
6 issues- Reminders broken on iOS
- Crashes after activating Touch ID
- Stuck on blue logo page after Touch ID stopped working
- Sync issues between devices
- Entries disappearing or not saving properly
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- Inability to export entries as PDF
Requested features
5 requests- 💡 Add bold, underline, italics formatting
- 💡 Add ability to add captions to images
- 💡 Add ability to customize moods
- 💡 Add Face ID, iCloud sync, and additional fonts
- 💡 Add ability to format text, add bullet points, link to calendars
Grid Diary
Reported bugs
4 issues- Entries disappearing or not syncing properly
- Password reset functionality not working
- Subscription issues and inability to access premium features
- Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions
Requested features
6 requests- Add Apple Pencil support
- Improve sync reliability across devices
- Provide more customization options for layouts and fonts
- Integrate with other productivity apps and calendars
- Implement a one-time purchase option
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- Allow randomized daily prompts
In-app purchases
Diary, Journal, Notes
- Diaro Pro 1 Year$8.991 Year
- Diaro PRO$39.99
Grid Diary
- Monthly3 Days trial$4.991 Month
- Monthly3 Months trial$4.991 Month
- Annual7 Days trial$29.991 Year
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- Annual6 Months trial$29.991 Year
Questions
Is Diary, Journal, Notes free?
Is Grid Diary free?
Which has better reviews, Diary, Journal, Notes or Grid Diary?
Do Diary, Journal, Notes or Grid Diary have ads?
Which is updated more often, Diary, Journal, Notes or Grid Diary?
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